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Print Friendly MapFollowing a portion of the former Wheeling & Lake Erie Railroad corridor, the Sippo Valley Trail spans 10 miles between Dalton and Massillon in northwestern Ohio, presenting a mix of rolling farmland, forests, and small towns. The trail takes its name from Sippo Creek, which cascades along the side of the path for nearly its entire length. There are numerous small bridge crossings, as well as 12 road crossings. All road crossings are well marked for both trail and road traffic and are easily navigated.
The rail-trail begins in Dalton at Village Green Park, where open green space (bordered by ball fields and a playground) and amenities are plentiful. Heading north out of the park, you’ll be traveling a short distance on a marked on-road bike route. Once out of town, though, you’ll be on a paved, wooded path.
At Deerfield Avenue, which marks the line between Wayne and Stark Counties, you’ll begin a 3-mile section that has a crushed-stone surface. In dry weather, the trail here is easily passable; in wet conditions, the stone surface gets slick and may be difficult for road bikers and wheelchair users. Pockets of forest create pleasant shade along the corridor.
The rural feel of the trail begins to change around mile 9 as you enter Massillon. While the path is mostly flat, here you will encounter a short but significant ascent to 17th Street and a steep descent into Lincoln Park. The route ends at Tremont Avenue, where you can pick up the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail, which travels more than 80 miles, including passage through the incredibly scenic Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Both trails are part of the Ohio to Erie Trail, a cross-state route stretching from the shores of Lake Erie in Cleveland to the Ohio River in Cincinnati.
The Dalton trailhead can be reached by taking I-77 to Exit 104. Head west on US 30/US 62, and go 16.1 miles. Turn right onto US 30 Alt./Main St., and in 0.8 mile, turn left onto Freet St., which dead-ends at Village Green Park.
The Massillon trailhead can be reached by taking I-77 to Exit 104. Head west on US 30/US 62, and go 6.7 miles to OH 21/Great Lakes Blvd. Head north 2.6 miles on OH 21. Exit onto Lillian Gish Blvd., and in 0.1 mile turn left onto Lincoln Way W/OH 172. In 0.2 mile, take a right onto Sixth St. NW and go one block. Take the first left and head west on Water Ave. NW, which dead-ends at Bottoms Park. This is the closest parking to the east end of the trail.
Lovely views but the trail condition as of 9/23 was terrible. Loose gravel throughout, numerous areas of severe pavement heaving, overgrown weeds hanging onto the trail, loose and warped boards on bridges, and a section in Lincoln Park that was unable to be ridden on due to sand and heaving. Numerous intersection are dangerously obscured due to unmaintained sightlines. The entire trail looks like it has been ignored and unmaintained for some time. Email with concerns sent to Stark Parks.
Beautiful trail as far as scenery but man is it rough! The bridge transitions are awful & the paved parts are so rough!!
Beautiful mostly shaded trail between Dalton and Massillon. Three miles in the middle of 10 mile trail is gravel (not paved). The paved sections at each end are in rough shape. Lots of roots, bumps and rough bridge entrances/exits as well as a trench right after first bridge coming from Dalton - watch out! The gravel section was smooth and easy to ride on our trek gravel bikes.
Very nice trail to ride good scenery along the way have done parts working completely the thing from Massillon to Dalton
On September 30, 2019 I rode the Sippo Valley Trail as part of my southbound ride on the Ohio to Erie Trail. This is a 10 mile trail that essentially runs westward from Massillon to Dalton, OH. The Sippo Valley Trail is weird. The ends of the trail in Massillon and Dalton are paved for the city residents but the middle which travels between quite a few farms remains crushed stone. This crushed limestone surface gets softer when it rains a lot, which it did on September 30th. The wet stone surface was passable with my 26 x 2.0 Schwalbe Marathon tires, but the wet stone surface on this day certainly ended up providing increased rolling resistance.
After reaching the end of the Sippo Valley Trail in Dalton, you must currently road-ride to the start of the Holmes County Trail in Fredericksburg, by riding from Dalton to Apple Creek and then Fredericksburg. This on-road section is the toughest section of the entire Ohio to Erie Trail (OTET) Route. It is also the largest continuous gap in the OTET. The abandoned rail lines between Fredericksburg, Apple Creek, Dalton, and Orrville certainly exist, but they need to be developed. This may be the area you want to skip if you are riding the OTET. This road route is fairly well signed with Ohio bike route #1 signs at most intersections or change in directions. However, I would suggest that anyone attempting to ride the Ohio to Erie Trail should purchase a set of maps from the Ohio to Erie Trail website.
Finally, a word of warning to all you potential OTET riders. If you are looking to reserve a room in Amish country make sure you make the call before you get into Amish country. Since the Amish don’t use cell phones there are very few cell towers, if any. In addition, the hills in this area can create dead zones, if you are below the tops of the hills. I had hoped that this situation had improved in the 3 years since I last came through this area on a cross-state ride but, alas, no such luck.
My daughter and I rode this trail for the first time recently on a hot (90F+)June day, having traveled about 2 hours from central Ohio for the experience.
We parked at the trail head in Dalton; Village Green Park; 41 S Freet St, Dalton, OH 44618. We noticed right away that there is a REAL restroom available for use.
The trail was notably rural in character, with a high percentage of shade given the tree canopy; perhaps 80% was shaded. Most of the road crossings were low traffic volume roads, but I recall perhaps 2 crossings required full attention to the traffic as hills served to hide the vehicles from view.
I'd estimate that 1/2 this trail was shale and about a mile of that was somewhat loose ... several inches deep shale that may bind a tire causing the inattentive rider to slide and perhaps crash. That said, I couldn't recommend this trail for skinny tire bikes.
This trail is part of the Ohio To Erie Trail Route and spans the distance between Dalton and Massillon, Ohio. It is paved on both ends with a 3 mile section of crushed gravel surface in the middle. The signage on the trail is excellent giving the rider names of road crossings and the distances to the next crossing. The trail is mostly flat with just a few short steep climbs near Massillon. The views consist mostly of well maintained local farms but as the leaves fill in on the trees in the spring I'm not certain how much a rider will be able to see of these. If you are planning to ride the Ohio to Erie route then you'll obviously experience this trail, otherwise it is not one that is a must ride.
Used this trail as a way to get back on the ohio and Erie Canal trail after camping in Mt Eaton. Was very surprised by the quality and maintenance of the trail . I haven't heard much about it but will be using it again when plans permit.
We rode this trail for the first time this year the first week end in June, beginning in Dalton. The noticeable improvement is the fresh gravel on the Massillon half of the trail. Last year, it was rutted and tough to make the uphill grade. Now smoothed out with fresh stone. At the Massillon terminus, the trail and road are closed due to construction, and we, like the other riders we encountered, opted to skip the last few blocks rather than chance the traffic and loose stones on the detour streets. One of the more delightful trails in the area, plenty of scenic stretches and good shade along the route, well kept up. We usually ride this one three times a summer, always a fun trip.
This is the only trail I have been on and I really like it. Once I do the whole trail both ways I will look for another. This is close to home and it works great for me as a new rider.
My daughter and I took this trail out of Dalton on a Sunday; one of the first really nice weekends here. Took a side trip up the Towpath to Ernies then back again for a total of close to 23 1/2 miles. I really enjoyed this trail. It was very uncrowded, flat, scenic. Did I say uncrowded?! Just a note about when you hit Massillon: Im used to before the towpath was complete and you had to ride on road for a few blocks. You do not have to anymore!! Just stay on the trail and follow the signs! It did seem to me that riding west on the way back was a slight uphill grade, i think we did a lot more coasting toward Massillon. Of course that could be because I was getting a little tired and we were on a long sunny stretch, something we're not used to seeing yet(sunny) Good ride to build up to a longer one planned for the next week
Headed out this morning for a nice ride. Left from 17th st trailhead in Massillon heading west. Other than the transitions over the bridges, very nice, smooth, fast ride. On a road bike, the trail becomes a little more challenging due to the crushed limestone surface. Also, due to some recent severe weather, there are many places where the trail is muddy and washed out. Had to abandon ship at Manchester road and weave my way back on some back roads until I was able to pick the asphalt back up and headed back into Massillon. Considering the weather recently, the trail is in pretty good shape. However, it is in desperate need of a good load of new limestone VERY soon. Good ride, if you're on your road bike, plan on avoiding the limestone sections and just take to the roads. Mountain and hybrids should have no issues at all.
Began at the Dalton trail head, effortless to find thanks to previous postings. Surprised to find an empty parking lot on one of the first warm and sunny mornings of the season. The first two miles are in excellent condition, smooth riding all of the way. As related in other posts, once the Stark County segment begins, it is crushed stone surfaced. The next mile or so is in good condition, and then the gravel path deteriorates somewhat, making for a bumpy ride for about a mile. Not too bad heading east, down slope. Coming back, the up slope run got a bit difficult with the loose, larger gravel making it a chore to pedal through. Not dangerous, just rough. Didn't help riding into the wind blowing from the west. The whole rest of the trail was uncrowded, scenic and made it a great day to be out. As posted previously, the gravel ends and pavement resumes as you approach Massillon. One note of caution when on the last mile in Massillon is that the city streets are in rough shape with a lot of loose gravel on the paved surfaces in places. First rest room availability we found was a portajon at Lincoln Park in Massillon. Nothing before that, so plan ahead.
Although listed at 9.5 miles, the mile-post distance and the distance on the gps were both 10.5 miles. So pack your water, beware the occasional horse apple, and enjoy this trail.
Biked this trail on a super hot day and again on a cold day. Trail was well maintained and pretty flat. Could use another restroom though, maybe a handful more benches.
Sunny Day's are here again. The bike ride has as much sun as shade. Good level ride in early Spring or late Fall. Dalton has nice places to stop for refreshments before returning on same trail.
I have ridden most of the trail as a side trip while riding the Towpath. Scenic and fairly flat. Features Woods and farms. Some houses as well. Good surface. It seems like it is subtly uphill the whole length west, but its subtly downhill getting back to theTowpath. :-)
Bring water with you.
If it wasn't for the towpath, this would probably get more pub.
The Wayne County Impact (Biking Division) is very happy that the bridge has been replaced. The WCIBD ranked this trail #3 on our "Most Outstanding Rail Trail" list. The bridge being out for years was an inconvienence but now that it has been replaced this trail is back as one of the best in NE Ohio! Check it out!!
A ride on trail completed June 26, 2012 reveals that the burned down bridge reported by previous trail users has been replaced. The replacement bridge is located just east of Lincoln Park, slightly east of mile marker 1.5.
The directions to the trail say we should turn left on Main St. in Dalton, coming from US 30 and on OH 94. Sorry, that is incorrect--I found that out on August 27 when I attempted to start from Dalton since the trail does not go far from Massillon's Bottoms Park due to bridge out. When you turn north on OH 94 to Dalton, turn RIGHT on Main St. and then right to the parking lot.
This trail has steady grades uphill either way, so you get the break back down whether you start in Massillon (at 17th St) or in Dalton.
Sorry guys but only having restrooms at Bottoms and Lincoln Park and then nothing again until all the way to Village Green Park in Dalton just doesn't cut it. Please look into either placing Portajons every so often along the trail or building a facility like the ones at Lincoln Park or Village green park I would suggest perhaps somewhere between Manchester and Deerfield Roads, that would seem to be about half way between Lincoln Park and Village Green Park.
Second, I would like to see more benches installed especially west of Bison.
Last but not least, I've noticed Last time I was out by the Dalton Section when the trail starts to curve around that plant in Dalton it takes a sharp turn North then makes another sharp turn South, but the pavement continues on about say 20 feet or so north then is blocked off, Is there ever going to be an extension?
I live in NE Ohio and have ridden most of the local rail trails. This trail had been on my radar this year to cycle. I set out on what promised to be a hot sunny summer Sunday morning from the Dalton trailhead. I was uncertain of the location of this trailhead but found it easily. It is 1 block south of Main Street on Freed Street and begins in the small village park.
The trail headed north on Freed Street and then began as a trail at the sewage treatment plant. Why do rail trails always have to pass by sewage treatment plants? The trail headed east through a very shady tree canopy for about 3 miles. It was asphalt paved and in relatively good shape. The next 3 were through mostly open farmlands with some shade now and then. The trail surface changed to crushed stone as it entered Stark County and was a mixture of rough and smooth spots. Nearing Massillon, the trail returned to asphalt and was more shaded for the final 3 miles. As mentioned in a prior post, the trail abruptly ends just past Lincoln Park at a burned out bridge.
The trail is definitely worth the ride. There is ample parking at Lincoln Park in Massillon or the village park in Dalton. What are lacking are restrooms along the trail. There was no evidence of running water either. The trail passes through a rural area with a lot of farms which are very scenic. However, there are no convenience stores or restaurants along the way to grab a bite to eat or a drink. The Stark Park District has an opportunity to improve the middle 3 miles of this trail by paving it or at least leveling the grade. When the bridge is replaced, the trail offers a nice trailhead in Massillon near dining and connecting to the popular Towpath Trail. Let’s hope this effort gets underway soon.
I set out to ride this trail in April 2010. I got the directions from a book on Ohio Bike Trails and thought it would be a nice change from the Towpath through the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. I drove to Massillon and tried to start riding at the Bottoms Park entrance. I unloaded my bike and proceeded to try to ride the first 2 miles only to discover that the bridge between 7th and 19th Street has been burned down. So I had to turn around and go back to Bottoms Park. An elderly gentleman walking his dog explained that the bridge was burned down by 3 teenagers about 3 years ago and has not been repaired. There used to be barricades up showing that you cannot get through towards Dalton, but someone (probably teenagers) keeps tearing them down. He said I should go back out and drive to 17th Street and start riding there. I thought I would use the restrooms at Bottoms Park but soon discovered that they were locked and had a great amount of graffiti on them. So I drove on up to 17th Street and found a nice parking lot with adequate restrooms across the street. Once I got to the trail it was nice. However, there are many major roads to cross and it seemed like I spent more time crossing streets than riding. Once I got into Dalton, the trail just ended and I turned around and rode back. For a short, easy ride, this trail is fine. But I would caution anyone taking children on it because of the roads you have to cross while riding.
This is one of my favorites. It gives you a little bit of everything. Small town riding (Dalton), then goes to crushed limestone riding in the farmlands, and finally you get to the busy City of Massilon. Plenty to see on this trail. One thing that's a huge bummer is the burnt bridge right before you finish is Massilon. I guess it's been burnt for a while (arson). HOWEVER, this is a makeshift path that cross the creek and bypasses the bridge.
I just bought a bike because I need the exercise. I am a couch potato, so I took my bike to this trail and it was awesome. Nice scenery, plenty of shade it was great. I will definately go there often. I cant wait to get a seat for the bike and bring my kids there.
Parking for the Sippo Valley Trail is at the Village Green Park on Freet St. not at the Buckeye Feed plant. Also the trail bridge between Lincoln Park on 17th St in Massillon and the Bottoms Park on 6Th St. in Massillon was vandalized and burned in the fall of 2008 and is closed. There is no estimate of when Massillon might have funds available to install a new bridge. To connect with the Towpath Trail in Massillon, (since this bridge is out), you can go south on 17th St and east on Lincolnway to the connector, or north on 17th St to Cherry St and east to the Towpath. Report posted 7-1-09
When arriving in town, you need to turn RIGHT onto Main street NOT left! We quickly realized the error in the original directions when we drove approx. a 1/2 mile and found no Freet St. !
Other than that, we enjoyed our ride and the shade was awesome! Our 3 year old also loved to play at the park when we were finished!
The Sippo Valley trail is just as described: a peaceful, scenic trail passing small farms with cows and following a little creek. It's a great extension westward for bikers riding the Ohio Erie Canal trail. From the traillhead in Dalton (just south of East Main on N. Freet St.) it's not real obvious where the trail begins; just follow N. Freet to the Buckeye Pet Food plant-- the trail begins there. There is a lot of shade on the trail, and where it passes marshland near Dalton there are a lot of birds. In Massillon, follow signs to the Ohio Erie Canal trail. If you're heading north, you'll cross a big viaduct, then follow U.S. 21 a short distance until the Ohio Erie Canal trail becomes quiet and wooded along the old canal. Or, follow signs to pick up this trail going south.
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